Entertainment Opinion and Social Commentary by Noted Journalist and Commentator by Rick Grant

This is a movie musical for people who loathe this genre. It is also a joyous film that celebrates the positive side of family relationships. In other words, in this scenario, it’s not how many fathers a young woman might have, but who really loves her. Mama Mia

Based on the wildly popular Broadway show that sells-out where ever it travels, the brilliantly edited post-production soundtrack pulses with diaphragm moving rhythms of ABBA’s music. And, the quality acting is impeccably staged on a beautiful Greek island, adding the perfect setting for this feel good premise.

Directed by Phyllida Lloyd with skillful pacing and orchestration of the scenes, the all-star cast revel in the aesthetic atmosphere and revved up spirit of the story. Amanda Seyfried plays Sophie, a young woman coming of age who finds her mother Donna’s (Meryl Streep) diary revealing that she had affairs with three different men about the time she got pregnant with Sophie. So, unbeknownest to her mother, Sophie invites all three men to her wedding, hoping to find out which one is her father.

This simple scenario evolves into light-hearted intrigue as Donna discovers the presence of her ex-boyfriends and doesn’t have a clue how or why they came to her daughter’s wedding. Of course, while all this is going on the music and dancing gets the audience rocking to the beat. Add the Greek chorus of Donna’s hotel workers, and the viewer is uplifted into a happy getaway.

As the guests arrive, viewers learn that Sophie invited her friends to this festive locale. Straightaway, Sophie tells her friends of her plot and they are immediately fascinated by its boldness and are excited by the dramatic possibilities. In these scenes, Amanda Seyfried as Sophie is so irresistibly adorable, viewers want to go up to the screen and give her a hug.

Of course, Meryl Streep dominates the cast with her shining presence, cavorting with her girlfriends Tanya, (Christine Baranski) a veteran ball-buster and boozer, and Rosie (Julie Walters) a party girl in her forties who writes best-selling cookbooks. The three gal-pals revert back to their younger days, acting like twenty year-olds and reminiscing about old times.

The threesome of Donna’s ex-sperm donors arrive in Bill’s (Stellan Skarsgard) sailing yacht and are wondering why they came. Harry (Colin Firth) jumped at the opportunity to get away from his nine-to-five banking job. Sam (Pierce Brosnan) has the most emotional investment in returning to the island to discover why his true love wasn’t there when he previously returned to propose to her.

Sophie’s plan to find her father in the three men doesn’t pan out. In fact, the whole plot backfires when Donna orders them off the island. Sophie was certain that when she saw the three men, she could tell right away who her father was. But, as each man figures out what she is up to, they all claim to be her father. What’s worse, her mom still has no idea that Sophie invited them to her wedding.

Meanwhile, the songs and dances are happening while Sophie mulls over what she can do to smooth things over with her mom. Finally, Donna gets it and the excrement hits the fan, which only leads to more singing and dancing. ABBA material holds up to the musical dynamics of this film, and the lyrics are perfectly synced to the actors mouth movements .Funny, sometimes producers of filmed musicals make a lame effort to stage a band in the background, but there is no way that the high quality of the soundtrack could have been recorded live.

Here is a case of a musical with a simple story that works on every level to entertain the audience to the point of wanting to dance in the aisles. It’s a thoroughly rousing experience to be enveloped in the music and the high quality of the acting and singing. Well, Pierce Brosnan can barely stay in tune, but viewers admire him for trying. Meryl Streep, who got her start in musicals, has a great voice. Besides Streep’s acting excellence, Amanda Seyfried is just so buoyant and exciting with her wild-eyed innocence as Sophie, she stands out among this stellar cast. If you are feeling down, this is the movie to see. You can’t sit there and view this film without feeling a surge of lightness of being.

Christopher Nolan’s masterfully written script for his vision of the Batman franchise focuses on the Batman

duality of the universe. If there is good, there is evil. Yin-yang. In a profound line in the script the Joker says to Batman, “You complete me.” In other words, to create chaos in Gotham, the Joker needs Batman to respond. Batman is the Joker’s muse. Everything the Joker does is to elicit a response from Batman. It’s like the Joker and Batman are two sides of the same coin. This is symbolized by Harvey Dent’s flipping coin.

Mountains of media hype has been written about Heath Ledger’s Oscar worthy performance as the Joker. And yes, he is riveting as the twisted but the most interesting character in the film. However, the entire cast is excellent, especially Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman. His deeply modulated voice and gruff manner express his rising dark side. Bale deftly plays Batman’s conflicts with jealousy over Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) stealing his girlfriend, Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal). More significantly, Bale portrays Batman as having more in common with the Joker than he is willing to admit.

When the Joker crashes a summit meeting of the mob, he sets his devious plan in motion to “kill” the batman. But it’s a ruse to let the mobsters felonious activities cover his plans for more chaos and explosions in the city. The Joker is not in it for the money. He loves to revel in ultra violence and cause the Mayor, the DA, Harvey Dent, and the police chief, Lt. James Gordon (Gary Oldman) to run around chasing their tails.

Meanwhile, Batman is trying to make Rachel jealous by dating four women at a time. Yes, Bruce Wayne’s behavior is adolescent and boring. His pride is hurt because he still carries a flame for Rachel, who has moved on to Harvey Dent. With the city in turmoil, Batman is obsessed with catching the Joker, who baits Batman with his macabre challenges. Clearly, the Joker is enjoying his explosive games with his nemesis Batman.

Nolan created a dark and ominous cityscape for his mosaic shot on location in Chicago, which is a great substitute for Gotham. His shots of Batman on the top of buildings contemplating his next move are stunning. Morgan Freeman plays Wayne’s answer to “Q.” He supplies him with a more advanced Batman suit and new high-tech gadgets. His updated Batmobile has an escape motorcycle that zooms Batman around the street of Gotham. Still, the Joker dominates Nolan’s vision of this Batman film.

Indeed, Keith Ledger has left filmdom with a memorable performance as the Joker. He is a one-man wreaking crew with access to unlimited amounts of explosives and cool looking gadgets. Ledger infused the Joker with facial ticks, tongue waggling, and weird facial distortions that make the Joker seem even more crazed. His badly painted on makeup runs, making him seem more evil looking. Yet, when he comes face to face with Batman his philosophical remarks make perfect sense. Ledger’s Joker sees city politics as ultimately corrupt and self serving. He’s able to manipulate them like puppets. He also uses the mob to do his bidding when he needs muscle. He makes sure they are well paid from the proceeds of his brilliant bank robberies.

Remarkably, Nolan’s script includes volumes of well written dialogue which is unusual for this mass market special effects genre. Nolan’s use of dialogue develops the characters and enhances the overall quality of the film. The characters all have secret agendas apart from their obvious jobs in Gotham. Gary Oldman turned in a restrained and multilayered performance as the beleaguered police chief who is promoted to commissioner during the tumult of the Joker’s campaign to draw out Batman for fun and games. In some ways, Ledger’s Joker is like a bad kid who gets joy out of pressing adults buttons. He just loves blowing stuff up.

Nolan’s wiz-bang action balanced with snappy dialogue have greatly updated the Batman franchise, making this Batman adventure the seminal film of the series. It proves that with skillful writing and filmmaking, a big budget mass market film can appeal to all viewers tastes. Nolan and Ledger may both be nominated for an Oscar for this breathtaking cinematic accomplishment. Bravo!

This formulaic remake of Jules Verne’s classic adventure hits all the right chords to come off as an Journey to the Center of he Earth

entertaining family film. However, compared to other CGI special effects movies in today’s world, the FX are rather cheesy. Still, Michael Weiss and Jennifer Flackett’s screenplay stays close to Verne’s story, which almost makes up for the el cheapo special effects..

As each action sequence happens, viewers can just picture the theme roller coaster ride at Six Flags. Verne’s imaginative world within a world at the bottom of the earth comes alive as Brendan Fraser portrays Trevor Anderson, who goes on a quest with his nephew Sean (Josh Hutcherson) and their mountain guide (hot chick) Hannah Asgeirsson (Anita Briem) in Iceland. The trio is retracing his missing brother’s footsteps from his notes inside Verne’s book.

Fraser mugs for the camera with his big-payday grin and rolling eyes. Briem’s acting is more subtle and convincing as is Hutcherson’s portrayal of Sean. But Fraser acting is repeticious. Shades of Encino Man leaked into his characterization. But who cares, this is aimed at families and it does its job of fast action in an exotic location. The neutralized gravity scene is a highlight, as Sean floats on a rock to cross a canyon. The trio faces unknown dangers of rising heat and prehistoric animals. Finally, they have to cross the inner-space ocean with its prehistoric fish and giant piranha to find the volcano vent that will send them to the surface.

Director Eric Brevis skillfully orchestrated the scenes using fast pacing with very few dead zones to muck up the adventure. Thankfully, the romance between Trevor and Hannah is downplayed. There is no time for making out when lava could come crashing down on your head in this hostile environment. The trio of explorers finds Trevor’s brother’s camp and his bones. Hannah’s father was also on the expedition. Trevor’s bro Max’s notes reveal how the trio can escape the strange world at the bottom of the earth.

There are several roller coaster-like ride sequences. The old coal car ride down into the depths of the earth and the escape ride inside the jaw bone of a T-Rex are packed with vicarious thrills. The trio finds an area where diamonds as big as baseball are littering the cave. Sean hides a bag-full of big raw diamonds in his backpack so when they get back to the surface, they will be rich. But the floor is as thin as ice and the trio falls into the abyss. Like Mr.Bill, they say “Oh nooo.”

In a couple of scenes, Trevor mutters junk science to explain their peculiar situation when there is a world in a bubble at the center of the earth, when all the time scientists theorized there was only a molten core of dense material at he center of the earth. Never mind the science, this is a fantasy adventure that has captivated kids for years. Verne’s classic literature is great summer reading for kids or adults.
Of course, Brendan Fraser is getting typecast in these family movies, but he’s not complaining. But as a change of pace, viewers would like to see him in a serious role. Clearly, though, Fraser has found his niche in the film biz and as long as the big paydays keep coming, I’m sure he’s in for the long haul. His new Mummy film will be out soon and that franchise has long legs.

Sure this is schmaltzy kids-stuff, but viewers automatically leave their brains at the theater entrance. It’s an exciting ride at the movies with cool creatures and fantastic situations. In other words, perfect summer family fun with loads of popcorn and soft drinks.

Based on a true story, Jonathan Rhys Meyers (The Tutors) stars as George Hogg, who was a British journalist trying to cover the Japanese invasion of China in 1937. Thwarted in his efforts to get to the action, George masqueraded as a Red Cross worker and drove into the front lines in a Red Cross truck. There he witnessed Japanese atrocities and is captured by the Japanese who find his camera and film of the massacre of an entire town’s population. Sentenced to death, George is about to get his head chopped off when he is rescued by a Chinese Communist, Chen (Yun-Fat Chow). Children of Huang Shi

During the Japanese invasion, China was embroiled in a civil war between the Nationalist troops and the Communist rebels, who joined forces to fight their common enemy, the Japanese. It was the old adage “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”–or at least until the Japanese were defeated. Chen is friends with a woman, Lee Pearson (Rada Mitchell) an Austrian nurse who is working with him to help the terrorized people with food, medicine, and primitive medical care.

In this tumultuous setting, Lee sends George to Huang Shi–an orphanage with no adult supervisor. Initially, she fools him into believing he will find a juicy story there, but her intent is to have him take over this “Lord of the Flies” compound to which she has been supplying food,. George is not happy with her deception, and wants to leave, but he sees the desperate need of the children for a leader to help them, discipline them, and hold classes in this time of war.

Directed by Roger Spottiswoode and written by Jane Hawksley and James MacManus, the scenario is deftly crafted and visually orchestrated by Spottiswoode in a gritty style portraying the horrors of war and the unimaginable cruelty of the Japanese. Spottiswoode captured the terrible fear that pervaded the Chinese countryside as the Japanese laid waste to the villages and slaughtered the towns people.

It was just a matter of time before the Japanese invaders reached Huang Shi. In the meantime, George takes command of the orphanage and fixes the generator. He cleans up the school and plants vegetables in the garden. Gradually, the kids begin to respect him. However, there are children there who witnessed their parents being murdered by the Japanese and are traumatized. One boy seems to be without hope.

Lee turns up to deliver food and she and George become friends. George is falling for her. But Lee has seen too much suffering and is emotionally numb. Nonetheless, George realizes that he has to make a decision to stay and take his chances with the Chinese, or move the entire population of the orphanage to safe location. But the nearest safe area is 700 miles across a mountain range. It seems impossible to consider this journey with mules carrying supplies and all the kids.

George’s transition from a driven journalist trying to make a name for himself into a compassionate leader of the orphanage is skillfully acted by Meyes whose clever characterization subtly makes the commitment to the children, as his whole purpose in being in China changes. In fact, George never realized that he had this talent of leadership and caring as part of his personality. But there was something about the way Lee left him holding the bag that seemed to inspire his epiphany.

Time is running out, as the Japanese are coming nearer to the orphanage, George makes the decision to make the journey to a safe location. Lee is against it, but at the last minute, she decides to come along. Now, the scenario turns into a quest for freedom as the long treacherous trip is fraught with danger. Meyers and Mitchell work well together as their characters’ relationship deepens. Along the journey, Lee and George’s romance is tested to the extreme. The supporting cast of Asian kids are expertly directed by Spottiswoode, adding greatly to authenticity of the scenario. This film uncovers a little known time in history just before WWII with drama and excitement.

Based on Mark Millar’s comic book series, this film is 100 proof action and not much else. Still, director Timur Bekmambetov’s pathfinding gun gags and fast action sequences are mind blowing. James McAvoy (The Last King of Scotland) is another A-list actor lured to the comic book action genre by a large pay check and having Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman as co-stars. Wanted

Jolie has very little dialogue and either does her own stunts or her double does them, but Jolie is the sexy window dressing to this story of a Fraternaty of Assassins who decide who deserves killing for the common good. The Fraternity is headed by Sloan (Morgan Freeman) who plays God in this cadre of killers. The killers dutifully carry out assignments written in code on linen squares and ask no questions, trusting Sloan’s judgement that the world will be better off without these people.

McAvoy’s character, Wesley is genetically linked to his father’s talent with firearms but he is hopelessly trapped in a nine to five job as a pencil pushing account executive, whose boss is a fat obnoxious woman who belittles him every day. One day he is in a store and is visited by Jolie’s character Fox, who saves him from an assassin. During the fast action car chase, Wesley’s life is changed in a radical manner as he is recruited to be one of the Fraternity’s shooters.

Clearly, anything would be better than Wesley’s humdrum job. But he has a lot to learn and his initiation is brutal. One of his first assignments is to shoot the wings off some flies in a garbage can. Thinking it’s impossible he tries it and discovers he’s a natural sharpshooter, which is inherited from his father. Thus his training begins, including his ability to take a beatdown.

Sloan tells Wesley that his father was killed by a rogue Fraternity assassin and he will get his chance to get revenge. But first, he has to carry out other assignments with the help of his instructor, Fox. They jump on top of subway trains and use advanced ammunition that is self powered and untraceable. The bullets can fly to the target like tiny missiles. This guided bullet technology is being tested for use in the near future.

Wesley gets a chance to tell his boss off and “grow a pair,” as he sets out on his new job as a covert assassin. This leads to some breath-taking action sequences as Wesley hones his trade. After Wesley pays his dues, he finally gets the assignment to take-out his father’s killer. But the job turns into a big surprise, as circumstances change and the story goes off on a tangent.

Bekmambetov’s method of orchestrating the action and CGI effects lacks subtlety. It’s in-your-face fast action designed to wow viewers but with a sophomoric script. Don’t get me wrong, I like action but not at the expense of the story. So many of these comic book movies fill the screen with explosions and fast action, and in this case, creative gun gags. But, the foundation of the story is weak, which cheapens the overall work. In many scenes Jolie is just standing around doing nothing. Wow, what a waste of this major talent. Jolie looks great performing the action but she is underutilized as an gifted actress. Much of her stunts are postured rather than acted out, leaving the dangerous stunts to her double.

Today, we are seeing big budget movies created mostly in postproduction studios with a minimum of actual live shooting. As in 300, we’re headed for a time when these comic book movies will not need real actors, as CGI gets more sophisticated. This film is 80% CGI and 20% live shooting, with the actors acting in front of green screen. Yes, I was entertained but I’d like to see better writing in these special effects movies. The story has many holes and the work suffers from this sloppy writing. But I’m afraid today’s viewers don’t give a damn.

With no dialogue through the first reel and sparse dialogue though the entire film, Pixar has created a visually stunning magnum opus animated film. Writer/director Andrew Stanton’s cautionary tale is about love conquering all, even with silicone based units–advanced robots that can feel emotions as well as function doing perfunctory tasks. Wall-E

The main character, WALL-E is the little compactor that could, who slugs away on an abandoned earth compacting trash into cubes which he stacks up. Remarkably, his sidekick is a roach with a distinctive personality. Giving a roach a personality without dialogue was a brilliant animated trick.

Like R2D2, WALL-E chatters little sounds and has a large vocabulary of expressions that are so endearing, parents and children will fall in love with him. WALL-E lives in an abandoned big compactor with all his collection of mementoes he has collected in his plastic lunch box. His friend the roach lives in a Twinkie and follows WALL-E everywhere.

One day, a large space ship lands and deposits EVE, a heavily armed Extra-Terrestrial Vegetation Evaluator. She was sent there to look for a specimen of ongoing photosynthesis–or vegetation that would indicate earth was habitable again, and the people of earth, now living in a gigantic mother ship, Axiom in deep space, could come home to populate the planet again. WALL-E sees EVE and it’s love at first sight.

At first, EVE sees WALL-E as a threat and she nearly vaborizes him with her primary weapon. She zooms around and finally meets WALL-E--video eye to eye. The two silicone based units size one another up and both decide that a friendship is worth pursuing. WALL-E takes her back to his crib, and shows her his memorabilia collection, with the roach looking on. When EVE is packed up with a plant inside her body, things change and the story moves in another direction.

Stanton’s story and direction plays heavily on the romance between WALL-E and EVE, but there are bigger matters hovering under the surface. How did the earth get so polluted with garbage? What are the living conditions aboard the mother ship Axiom? Of course, the latter question is answered when WALL-E latches on to the spacecraft as it returns to the mother ship. There he sees many other service robots which cater to the needs of the carbon based units–the spoiled humans who for years haven’t had anything to do and have gotten obese in their fly around easy chairs.

WALL-E doesn’t fit in with the other bots. He’s dirty and they are spotless and organized. WALL-E is looking for EVE in the emmense interior of the ship. The Captain’s (voiced by Jeff Garlin) job is routine. Every day he gets the same nominal reports on the ship’s condition. His first mate is a robot that is very close to mutiny.

When WALL-E is discovered, all hell breaks loose and the robots go rogue. Now the Captain has a real crisis on his hands and his first mate becomes his nemesis. EVE’s plant is discovered and the captain must consult the manual on how to program the ship for return to earth. In a scene which predicts that books will be obsolete in the far distant future, the Captain has never seen a book and when he finally sees that it has pages he’s amazed.

Stanton’s mother ship Axiom makes a statement about how our lives could change if robots did all the work. In his vision, we wouldn’t exercise and would get obese, loosing the use of our legs. In every scene here are dismal predictions of earth’s future. Yet, WALL-E brings hope through emotional feelings back to the humans wasting away in Axiom. They see WALL-E and EVE and suddenly they are holding hands again. Love is healing the humans, who had almost forgotten about emotions. The little plant is like the Ark of The Covenant –it represent hope in earth’s future. The little compactor with a heart, WALL-E’s love of EVE, started a revolution that brought the humans back to their senses.

Stanton’s simple vision for this film created an animated masterwork of visual metaphors and righteous goals that may at first seem corny, but it leaves a lasting impression on the viewers.

Hancock is not your father’s kind of superhero. He’s a drunk and doesn’t know what to do with his amazing powers. Will Smith portrays Hancock as the superhero everyone loves to hate until a PR guy, Ray Ombre (Jason Bateman) decides to reform him and make him a superhero the public can love. Ray assumes Hancock has issues with his powers and is lonely. So, he brings him home where his wife Mary (Charlize Theron) isn’t thrilled to have him around. But Ray’s son idolizes the scraggy street person. Hancock

Peter Berg helmed this unusual spin on superhero films with a keen eye for action and even pacing. The scenario is full of surprises that can not be anticipated, which keeps the viewers on the edge of their seats. Yes, Hancock has helped the police but he’s caused so much collateral damage, there are numerous warrants for his arrest. But how do you confine a superhero who can fly faster than a bullet. You can’t. So, the whole city of Los Angeles is angry with Hancock whose overkill stunts cost the city millions of dollars.

More significantly, Hancock is an alcoholic who never bathes. So, he’s a huge problem for the city. Ray has big job to reform Hancock. The fact that Hancock could care less about the city makes Ray’s job much more difficult.

Thus, Ray’s master plan is to have Hancock apologize to he city in a news conference and willingly serve of jail time to make people forget him for awhile until the police really need his special talents. Hancock does not adjust well to prison life, but sticks it out until one day, the Chief of Police calls him into a vicious firefight with bad guys who have taken hostages and are using heavy ordnance. Downtown L.A. is a war zone.

Hancock adopts his new image wearing his leather suit. He saves the city from these thugs and rescues a female cop. Now, he is the hero he was meant to be. But Hancock still can’t remember his past and it haunts him. Things happen that begin to clear up his past in a shocking way. The twist shifts the scenario into high gear with more surprises to come. Meanwhile, Ray is working hard to keep Hancock on the straight and narrow. But then, Ray has to face some very important personal problems that change his life.

Will Smith starts to feel better about himself and quits drinking, which helps him control his powers. When the viewers finda out about Hancock’s past, it all starts to make sense in a comic book consciousness way.

Charlize Theron has a challenging role as Ray’s wife who keeps one big secret from her husband. But, Ray has to adjust to the changing situation or go crazy. At this point in the story, Hancock has an epiphany and realizes that it’s not about him, but his purpose for being on the earthly plane.

Of all the superhero movies that have come down the pike and the ones waiting to be released, this slant on the typical story-line is the most interesting because it involves emotional depth and advanced characterization by Smith, Theron, and Bateman, who artfully handle the various changes in their characters’ emotional life.

Berg’s directorial talents are honed to a sharp edge in this film. The special effects are spectacular. But the stunning visual aspects of the scenario are tempered by the in-depth portrayal of the characters by the principal cast. There is much about the story I can’t reveal, but take my word for it, the surprises will blow your mind. The fact that Will Smith stars in the film will fill up theaters. But the movie is a knock out punch to the gut and will do blockbuster business.

Anne Hathaway, who plays Agent 99 in this film, said on the Tonight Show that as a kid she watched episodes of the old TV series Get Smart on Nick at Night. “I pretended I was Agent 99 kicking pillows and acting crazy,” she said. Imagine her surprise and delight when she got the role of Agent 99 in this movie update of the 1965-70 TV show. She went on to say that she met Barbara Feldon (now 76) who was the original Agent 99.

So, another oldie-but-goldie TV series has been upgraded for the big screen in an uncertain movie market that demands familiar product. Ironically, though, unless, like Hathaway, youngsters viewed the original TV show on Nick at Night, people born after 1970 would not know of the TV series. Still, it has history and was a great character for Steve Carell.
To give the movie a modicum of authenticity, Warner Bros. brought in the original writers of the TV series, Mel Brooks and Buck Henry to work on the screenplay along with Tom J. Castle and Matt Ember. Of course, Steve Carell was an obvious choice to play Maxwell Smart, Agent 89, originally portrayed by Don Adams who died in 2005 at age 82.

For his characterization of Smart, Carell gleaned some of Adams style melded with his character on The Office. The result is Carell’s hilarious droll comedic style. The inevitable romantic set up with Hathaway’s Agent 99 is a bit too cutesy but still funny. Of course, Agent 99 has to do the heavy lifting for her inept partner who is promoted to the field after being a CONTROL analyst and a brazen attack by CONTROL’s nemesis KAOS. Yes, Agent 89 bungling and being bailed out by Agent 99 sets up the gags and comedic lines. For the most part, it works to produce a high laugh level throughout the entire 110 minutes of the film.

In this role, Carell is naturally funny, and his buttoned-up spy persona gives him a chance to expand his comedic charm with his co-star Anne Hathaway, whose annoyance at Smart turns to love as they try to foil KAOS’ plans to nuke a classical music performance being attended by the President of The United States, played by James Caan.

In today’s anything-is-possible special effects milieu, the action sequences are outrageous and fun. Smart’s ineptness is played against Agent 99's skill to get them out of trouble. Oddly enough, Smart does have some skills and surprises Agent 99 when he does something spectacular.

Alan Arkin, whose career was revived by Little Miss Sunshine, plays The Chief who finally decides to send Smart into the field. As a clever reference back to the original series, Smart uses props from the series at a museum exhibit of the series including the original Sunbeam car during a chase sequence.

Dwayne Johnson (who is dropping The Rock) plays Agent 23, who has been taken out of the field to do boring office work at headquarters. As the story progresses Agent 23 has a bigger role in the plot. Terence Stamp plays the head of KAOS, Siegfried. Much of the movie was shot on location in Russia, which acts as an exotic dark world of ex-KGB mobsters and intrigue-- a perfect setting for Smart and Agent 99 to get into trouble.

Granted there are some dead zones that lead to the comedic set-ups, but when the comedy resolves, guffaws follow. Carell carries the picture with his special brand of comedy and he works well with Hathaway. The picture is fun with a lot of action and dark atmosphere in Moscow. The romance angle seems a bit forced but is nice touch. Hell, Karel even kisses Dwayne Johnson in a bizarre scene. Overall, the picture is not perfect but it’s a hell-of-a lot of fun

Clearly, Mike Myers is a comic genius. After reading Deepak Chopra’s books, Myers was inspired to write a wild satire of Chopra’s influence on Western spirituality and everything Bollywood plus include in the film his love of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Myers wrote the screenplay and produced the work, with Marco Schnabel as director. The resulting film is a hilarious over-the-top Myers comedy–a real laugh feast.

Myers portrays his character Guru Pitka as second fiddle to Deepak Chopra. Pitka aspires to be the number one self-help guru in America, if he could just get on Opah–an automatic precursor to surpassing Chopra. Oprah will have him on her show if he can settle the romantic entanglements of Toronto Maple Leafs’ star hockey player, Darren Roanoke (Romany Malco) whose wife is having an affair with L.A. Kings’ star Jacques Grande, (Justin Timberlake) who is famous for being well endowed. Roanoke’s jealously has put a damper on his game and the Stanley Cup playoffs are coming up.

Guru Pitka’s methods are unorthodox. He uses regression, distraction therapy, and junk psychology–or he makes it up as he goes along.. More seriously, he has to deal with the Maple Leafs owner Jane Bullard (Jessica Alba) and Coach Cherkov (Verne Troyes–Mini Me in the Austin Powers films). The challenge for Guru Pitka is to give Roanoke’s confidence back by convincing his wife to reunite with him.

The gags and jokes come fast and furious with a continuous laugh level in the theater as Guru Pitka navigates the treacherous conflict management of Roanoke’s depression, while holding court at his lavish American ashram. Yes, Guru Pitka has designs on Jane Bullard, but back in India he agreed to a vow of chastity by wearing a chastity belt suggested by his cross-eyed Guru Tugginmypudha (Ben Kingsley). So, imagine his frustration when he gets aroused and can’t do anything about it.
Myers dominates the entire film with a large repertoire of jokes and funny dialogue. His scenes with Jessica Alba are especially funny. Of course, the foul-mouthed Vern Troyes is the butt of Myers silly jokes. As Jane Bullard, team owner, Alba has to deal with a curse on the team that was initiated by her late father. So, Guru Pitka has a difficult job getting Roanoke back with his wife and dealing with his overbearing mother Prudence.

Helmer Schnabel’s orchestration of the scenes is borrowed from the flashy Bollywood productions, creating a colorful backdrop for Guru Pitka’s shenanigans. But the film is a Mike Myers showcase for its entire running time. The set was Mike Myers world and the other actors were just acting in it. It turns out that Guru Pitka has a open latch to his chastity belt and didn’t have to wear it. It was just there as an incentive. But, having sex with Bullard had to wait while he worked his magic on Roanoke, so the Maple Leafs can win the Stanley Cup–a wet dream of Myers.

Not surprisingly, since this is Mike Myers carte blanche project, there are hockey scenes with Guru Pitka coaching Roanoke to first, not to fight, which serves as a distraction, then to fight. This is where Guru Pitka is making things up at Roanoke’s expense. Deepak Chopra has a cameo in the film, which proves that Chopra has a great sense of humor about himself.

Much of the humor is silly but Myers is just so funny as Guru Pitka, viewers can’t help but laugh at his absurd antics. The bizarre E-mail Hindu protest of the film that alleged it defamed their religion is completely unfounded and ridiculous, especially since they had not seen the film. It delivers its promise of continuous laughter from beginning to the end.

Esteemed actor Edward Norton portrays Bruce Banner, a guy with a massive anger management problem. Norton, like Robert Downey Jr., have been lured into the comic book superhero world by Hulk

Marvel Studios with the promise of franchise big bucks and high profile publicity. Norton brings his considerable acting talent to the role of Banner, who in this film becomes a fugative from the military that wants to turn him into a weapon.

In these formulaic comic book movies, the military is always portrayed as a big clunky inept machine that sends in a massive show of force when only a few special forces would do. Then the Keystone-like cops show up with their hand guns–like that’s going to stop the Hulk.
Zapped by gamma rays, Banner’s cells mutate uncontrollably when he gets angry, and he bulks up into a ten foot hunk of burning rage–ten feet tall, green, and able to toss Humvees around like toys. However, Banner has been looking for a cure for this strange malady and attempts to control his anger by meditation and watching his pulse.

With the military hot on his trail, Banner hides out in Asia–communicating with a scientist named Blue via the Internet. Blues claims he can cure him if he had the data from the original experiment that went terribly wrong. Of course, Banner has to wear stretch pants or appear naked. The site of a nude Hulk would traumatize little kids. Likewise, Banner has to refrain from sex with Betty Rose (Liv Tyler) lest he turn into the Hulk during the act. Yeah, for Banner, changing into his mean green alter-ego is a terrible experience.

Director, Louis Leterier’s take on the Hulk legend utilizes his actors to best advantage and he orchestrates the scenes skillfully, melding in the CGI special effects with seamless continuity. But let’s face it, the Hulk is nothing but a demolition machine that seeks revenge for being blown up into a raging green giant. (There is nothing “jolly” about this giant.) Ah, but Betty can tame the beast inside. In a touching scene, Betty comforts the Hulk with affection as he actually suppresses his out-of-control rage and quiets down. Sadly, though, Banner as the Hulk has the mental capacity of a three year old having a tantrum.

Tim Roth plays the villain, Emil Blonsky who morphs into the Abomination for the inevitable smackdown finale. Brodsky and Banner are both scrawny guys before their transformations into giant wrecking machines. Blonsky admires the Hulk’s strength, so he volunteers to be injected with the serum that created the Hulk so the military can either use him and get rid of the Hulk. Yes, it’s predictable and the scenario operates on a twelve year old boy mentality, but moviegoers (twelve year old boys at heart) really like this comic book reality. It does lend itself to lots of action and destruction like the Japanese Godzilla movies.

Of course, Marvel Studios is leading up to The Avengers in 2010-2011 which will feature Captain America, Iron Man, Ant-Man and The Incredible Hulk. Each movie will be introduced separately before the combination of superheroes movie. Comic book aficionados already know this is going to happen. So, Robert Downey Jr and Edward Norton will have job security far into the future.

Given the limitations of this genre, the comic book movies like The Incredible Hulk are entertaining summer fun. Director Leterier and other quality helmsmen bring filmmaking excellence to this adolescent subject matter. Whether one is into comic book superheroes or not, one can expect cheap thrills as the monsters battle for supremacy.

Part superhero, part horny wild and crazy guy, Adam Sandler’s latest character Zohan is an over-the-top goof-ball, even for Sandler’s standards. Co-written by Sandler and Judd Apatow, Zohan is an Israeli Mossad agent with super-powers and an overactive libido. Zohan can singlehandedly go into an enemy camp, kill every bad guy in the place, and rescue a hostage. He pictures himself as God’s gift to women. Lucky for him, chicks dig him, with his lewd pelvic thrusts, and the oversized bulge in his pants. Viewers can only guess that Sandler stuck a sock in his shorts or is using a strap-on prosthetic

Ah, but Zohan has a secret passion to become a hairdresser in America, while he goes out on covert missions for the Mossad. One day, Zohan has had enough of war and killing. So he fakes his own death and stows away in an airliner with two dogs, and lands in America determined to work for a top tier salon. His dreams are shattered when he is laughed out of Paul Mitchell’s salon. He tries other salons but he has no licence or experience. Finally, he finds a small salon run by a pretty Palestinian named Dalia (Emmanuelle Chriqui.) She reluctantly hires him as a clean up person. Zohan is thrilled–he is beginning to live his dream.

Savvy viewers can see Apatow’s influence in Sandler’s raunchy style as Zohan. But despite the sophomoric gags, Sandler’s Zohan delivers a continually high laugh level throughout the run-time of film. Of course, this low level comedy is in the knee-jerk category, that is, it’s so off-the-wall viewers are forced to laugh. Sandler made his bones on semi-serious characters that had funny quirks with which young men identified. His style is always popular with the Frat boy crowd, but lacks subtle sophistication. Zohan presents an Animal House-like humor that some people find irresistible. Don’t get me wrong, I laughed a lot through the film, so I’m not being hypocritical. Besides, Sandler has earned respect and decision-making clout in Hollywood because his films make money and his production company can deliver the goods.

John Turturro almost steals Sandler’s thunder with a memorably wacky performance as Zohan’s nemesis, The Phantom, who comes to America to live his dream as a shoe salesman. Meanwhile, Zohan finally gets the chance to cut hair and his first client is an elderly lady who he fusses over and does kinky things to. Soon, Zohan is in the back room having sex with the lady. This causes a sensation and soon there is a line of old ladies around the block waiting for Zohan to give them a new hair-do, and do them.

The shop owner, Dalia is thrilled to have the windfall from Zohan’s shenanigans, despite the fact that she and the other hair dressers are embarrassed by Zohan’s sexual escapades. Dalia is being pressured to sell out her shop so a developer can build a mall in the building. But despite the outrageous rent, Zohan is bringing in enough business to cover the lease. One day Zohan develops erectile dysfunction and discovers his inability to get it up is because he is in love with Dalia. At first the feeling is not mutual. She thinks Zohan is crude and rude with all his gyrating and sexual suggestive jumping around, thrusting his crotch into clients side.

When Zohan is recognized by a terrorist gang in NYC, they set out to kill him. Big mistake–Zohan dispatches them with ease, and saves the block from destruction. Since the Arab and Israeli characters are living in America and are more interested in making money than ideological differences, they get together to stop the developer from driving them out, along with the help of Zohan. There is a subtle message here but it’s not over done. After all, Zohan came to America to get away from the continuous conflicts in the Middle East.

Indeed, Sandler went all out for this role working out and getting buff for the physically demanding part, with the help of special effects and a stunt double, of course. In NYC, Zohan is a fish out of water tale but that features a comic book character who has his dream of cutting hair. This Sandler film could win him new fans for his peculiar style of comedy.

This is an underdog tale that features a bulbous Panda, Po (voiced by Jack Black) whose big ambition is to get away from his father (a duck) noodle business. When Po goes to a festival and through a set of circumstances is mistaken for the chosen one to take on an formidable adversary.

Po is blasted into the limelight with no kung fu skills and has to face master Shifu (voiced by Dustin Hoffman). It doesn’t take long for Shifu to realize that Po is less than zero at the martial arts. But, he is all the master has to work with to defeat the mighty tiger–Dragon Warrior.

Aimed a kids from DreamWorks animation division, the protagonist, Po is an example of a humble, overweight Panda persevering to overcome his noodle selling roots to rise to an advanced level of martial arts. Ah, but when Po arrives at Shifu’s training center, his only skill is eating up the center’s groceries. The Panda has much to learn, but can Shifu train Po in time to save himself and his center from the evil Dragon Warrior, who seeks revenge for Shifu sending him to jail.

Shifu’s students include the stealthy Tigress ( Angelina Jolie) Mantis (Seth Rogen)Viper, (Lucy Liu) snow leopard Tai Lung, (Ian McShane). The Master’s students think they are ready to take on the Dragon warrior, but Shifu knows that the Warrior is a powerful negative force. Guru Shift puts Po through a regime of exhaustive routines, which Po fail miserably. Po’s eating disorder gets worse as his poor self image deteriorates into self pity. But Po has hidden powers he has never summoned up until they are needed. In certain situations Po’s weight is a definite advantage.

Co-directed by Jon Stevenson and Mark Osborne, Po’s character was built around Jack Black’s comedy style and body language, which works most of the time. Ah yes, he fat jokes get tiresome, but Po’s body image is redeemed later in the story. The idea of a Preying Mantis and a snake performing King Fu is funny and endearing for kids and adults. Some of the fight scenes are a bit over the top, but the kids and their parents will enjoy the action.

Of course, the showdown between Shift’s gaggle of fighters and the Dragon Warrior builds momentum, as Po reaches a lower level of kung fu proficiency . As Warrior’s release date draws near, Shifu decides he will take on the Warrior himself. If he dies so be it. This is when Po can step up and prove his worth as a martial artist, but he’s on another eating binge.

The moral of this fairy tale reaches kids that even if they are overweight, they can contribute to society and develop self esteem. But this is not an obvious preachy message. The film is meant to be light family entertainment. Kids love kung fu movies and Jack Black’s spin on Po makes him a lovable character.

The day comes when the Dragon Warrior is released and Shifu’s students go to meet him. The Tigress is convinced she can defeat Warrior in a no holds barred confrontation. The other students go with her for support. Po is no where in sight as the showdown results in a mighty battle.
Overall, this is a funny and entertaining kids film that features the indomitable panda Po, who is the embodiment of Jack Black. He steals his scenes with his physical comedy and expressions. Its’ amazing how the animators recreated Black’s perosnality in an animated character that wins audiences hearts. Seeing a Preying Mantis and snake doing kung fu is worth seeing the film to experience.

Revisitng the incredibly skewed and chaotic 2000 election, which was ultimately decided by the Supreme Court–giving the razor thing election to George W. Bush (henceforth W) was hard to watch. After Bush beat Kerry in 2004, we were royally screwed and now when W leaves office in January Recount

2009, the next president will have a huge mess to clean up. Nonetheless, Jay Roach’s intricately choreographed film using top tier actors came off as a funny and surprisingly entertaining movie. Danny Strong’s masterfully written screenplay added the right touch of class this story desperately needed.

When the dust cleared afer the 2000 election debacle, W was president, but because not all the ballots were manually counted, many people, including me, feel that the election was a farce–a bad play that was rigged against Al Gore. After all, the State of Florida was and is heavily infested with Republicans such as, the Governor (the president’s brother Jeb) and the Secretary of State-- neurotic, self absorbed Katherine Harris, played with remarkable restraint by Laura Dern.

Had this film been a fictional story, no one would believe it could happen. But it did, and the movie lays out the tangled web of dirty tricks, political machinations, and the street-fight undercurrent of the battle. Director Jay Roach makes no excuses for his bias, claiming the election was stolen from Al Core. And, the facts of the case back that up. However, since all the ballots were not hand recounted, the truth lurking in those stored ballots will be fodder for conspiracy theorists to chew on far into the future. The last scene of the film is a shot of the warehouse with the hundreds of boxes of the stored ballots which are sitting there, waiting for historians to count them.

Kevin Spacey as Gore’s legal adviser Ron Klain and Tom Wilkinson as Bush’s post-Election architect , James Baker III, are the focus of Strong’s script. The other A-list actors playing the roles of the principles in this Shakespearian drama revolve around these two combatants. Denis Leary as Gore’s campaign strategist Michael Whouley is another prominent player in this theater of the absurd.

Roach deftly weaves actual footage of the news from the cable and broadcast sources into his film, in some cases showing younger looking anchors, now almost 8 years older. The end of the balloting in Florida turned into the world’s longest cliffhanger as the two opposing teams battle in court to get the mind boggling complexities of the chads, hanging chads, and dimples hand counted, and argue over Florida’s tangled laws from county to county.

In a poignant and funny scene, after the noble fight had dragged on, Ron Klain and Michael Whouley are sitting at a bar drowning their sorrows, and Klain (Spacey) says to Whouley (Leary), “You know, I’m not sure I even like Gore anymore.” It was the point that Whouley realized that the mighty Republican machine, led by James Baker had won the fight. Clearly, Tom Wilkinson turned in an award winning nuance performance as Baker. It was Shakespearian in its complexity and depth.

Laura Dern’s characterization of Katherine Harris was layered and full of parody. However, she resisted the temptation to take her portrayal into the realm of overt satire. Harris doesn’t come off as a raving bitch but a person that did consult the rule of law as her guide. Of course, she relished the limelight and Dern brings that out. In other words, Dern’s characterization is not a smear job but an accurate portrayal of Harris’ dilemma, suddenly being put in a position of great power. Later when Harris ran for Congress, she alienated her staff and most everyone quit because of her irrational behavior. So, perhaps Dern didn’t go far enough to discredit Harris. Still, Dern’s performance is one of filmdom’s most memorable characterizations.

Luckily for those who didn’t see this film, it will be reshown on HBO repeatedly through May and June. Historically the film is accurate, but above all, it is a wildly entertaining movie about the epitome of political intrigue ending with W as president.

In writer/director Bryan Bertino’s twisted tale, the victims ask why the masked strangers are terrorizing them? In real life, a pregnant Sharon Tate asked the same question when she was being stabbed by the Manson Family. There is no why. The creepy lowlifes in this scenario are sadistic thrill killers and have chosen James Hoyt (Scott Speedman) and his girlfriend Kristen McKay (Liv Tyler) at random because “they were home.” Strangers

The movie rings true because we know that in real life, these murderous characters exist. Every day there are stories in the news about home invaders who kill the whole family for no reason but they are there, or they didn’t want to leave witnesses. So, the realism gives the script bite, keeping the audience on edge with aniticipation.

James and Kristen had been at a wedding and James used that romantic opportunity to propose marriage to Kristen, who says no-- she is not ready to get married. Awkward!! Yes, James feels like a chump for not reading Kristen’s signals correctly. Nonetheless, the couple goes off to his family’s summer house in the woods for an anticlimactic night. This is not the proposal afterglow that James had in mind, as they arrive at the rustic house with rose buds all over the interior. Kristen feels sad and guilty. But clearly, the two have feelings for one another.

As the couple begins to relax and think about having make up sex, a loud knock interrupts their sexual interlude. A young women appears at the door and asks if her friend is home? They say no and think she is very weird. After recovering from the rude interruption, they resume their romantic interlude. Suddenly, there are more strange noises. James goes out to find his car has been vandalized. Now the couple is really getting freaked out.

For reasons not entirely clear, James leaves Kristen alone, and she has to deal with more harassment from the person or persons outside the house. When James returns, Kristen is hysterical, and James looks for his father’s shotgun and its ammo. When he told his sweetie that he had hunted with his father and knew about firearms, he is forced to confess to her that he was lying. Yes, maybe Kristen is justified in not marring this jerk. But he manages to screw on the barrel and load the 12 gauge pump shotgun. Then James and Kristen barricade themselves in the bedroom facing the door. Whoever appears at the door will get a face full of double-ought buckshot.

Bertino builds the tension skillfully but the viewers can figure out that the next person to appear at that doorway will not be a bad guy. Still, the thought of a siege with unknown assailants trying to get into the house is a strong device to ramp up the viewers’ fear. It turns out that James goes outside to find the gang as a preemptive strike. However, he’s inept at finding the invaders and ends up knocked out. By now, Kristen is completely irrational and has given into her hysterics. Ah yes, this couple is easy pickings for the strange quartet of house invaders.

As the tension mounts to a shockingly violent climax, Bertino’s script revealed some glaring holes, such as the couple’s inability to defend themselves. Their goofy choices to mount a defense cause the viewers to mock them for their stupidity. The vintage vinyl record stereo playing old country music was a cool touch and so were the Mormon boys who discover the aftermath of the night of violence. More curiously, why did James leave a second time knowing Kristen was scared to death? It just didn’t seem plausible that her boyfriend, who had just proposed marriage to her would leave her alone with strange noises outside.

Overall, the scenario creates extreme fear and plays to our most primal fears of the unknown dangers lurking in the darkness. Yes, this gang of ruthless home invaders could have been the Manson family circa 2008. The picture delivers on its promise of scaring the bejesus out of the viewers.

Originally, George Lucas wrote 1981's Raiders of the Lost Arc as a homage to the old pulp serial movies of the 30s and 40s. Steven Spielberg and Lawrence Kasdan also worked on the original Indiana Jones

screenplay. The three picture series grossed $1.2 billion worldwide with average budgets at $96 million. So, the idea for a fourth picture was met with a tepid response by the principles.

More significantly, Lucas and Spielberg would not make the fourth movie without Harrison Ford, so he had to approve the script and be on-board for the shoot. The deal wrangling took at least five years to bring the project to fruition. One must keep in mind that the franchise was never intended to be anything other than grade B entertainment. The three picture series fulfilled that commitment in spades.

Thus the fourth installment meets the criteria and quality production values of the other three with humor, Spielberg’s rough and tumble action sequences, and references back to the continuing story line. The last Indiana Jonesadventure was released 19 years ago, so, Harrison Ford looks a bit more rough around the edges, but remarkably, he wears his age well and looks fit. Hiring Shia LaBeouf as Mutt Williams was a smart move since he is emerging as the hot new movie star representing today’s youth. Cate Blanchett, made-up like a dominatrix, has an odd role as a twisted German psychic, Irina Spalko.

In this fourth installment, viewers find Dr. Henry “Indiana” Jones still teaching when he is called back on an adventure involving a strange hypnotic crystal skull. Before long, Jones is entangled in a Soviet plot to uncover the secret behind the mysterious artifacts hidden away in the Mayan jungle. Set in 1957, the period details are accurate right down to Mutt Williams’ (LaBeouf) duck-tail hair-do. The ruthless cold-war era Russians believe that the crystal skull will help them with their mind control experiments.

Indiana Jones is kidnaped by the Russians but he escapes and goes on an expedition to find his colleague Professor Oxley, who is rumored to be mad as a hatter. Oxley is the key to finding the crystal skull and its secrets. Meanwhile, Jones and his exhibition party are being followed by the Russians with badass Irina swinging her sword.

Spielberg never lets the movie drag, and here are plenty of action sequences to satisfy the most rabid stunt junkie. In one sequence, Mutt is sword fighting with Irina off two vehicles traveling side-by-side. Ford/Jones was in fighting trim as he engages in continuous fist fighting with a hulking Russian colonel.

During Jones and Co.’s quest for the crystal skull, Jones meets his ex-wife, Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) and learns some shocking news. Now she has joined the group on their trek into the Mayan jungle. It turns out that Professor Oxley is only mad in the presence of the crystal skull, which has powers beyond human understanding.

The fourth episode of the Indiana Jones legacy stays true to the other three movies, in that, Jones is a tenured professor of archeology, which gives him credentials to go on trips to faraway places to find artifacts that will help scientists understand ancient civilizations. Jones is also handy with that whip and his fists. It’s no secret that today’s PhD archeologists were inspired by the Indiana Jones’ movies to study this field in college and explore past civilizations.

For me, it had been nineteen years since I viewed an Indiana Jones movie, so this fourth edition was exciting, entertaining, and fun. You can’t go wrong with Spielberg and Lucas helming a film.